Dungeons & Dragons acquisition rumours cleared up by Wizards of the Coast
The latest gaming rumours claim that entertainment conglomerate Tencent is looking to acquire Dungeons & Dragons from Hasbro, taking on the leader in high fantasy design.
01st Feb 2024 14:00
Images via Hasbro | Larian Studios
Dungeons & Dragons acquisition rumours cleared up by Wizards of the Coast
The latest gaming rumours claim that entertainment conglomerate Tencent is looking to acquire Dungeons & Dragons from Hasbro, taking on the leader in high fantasy design.
01st Feb 2024 14:00
Images via Hasbro | Larian Studios
Update: Following reports of Tencent looking to purchase Dungeons & Dragons, Wizards of the Coast have issued GGRecon with a statement that explains that they, in fact, are not looking to sell the fantasy property.
The statement reads: "We regularly talk to Tencent and enjoy multiple partnerships with them across a number of our IPs. We don’t make a habit of commenting on internet rumors, but to be clear: we are not looking to sell our D&D IP. We will keep talking to partners about how we bring the best digital experiences to our fans. We won't comment any further on speculation or rumors about potential M&A or licensing deals."
As it stands right now, Dungeons & Dragons has never been more popular. This is pretty bonkers when you consider its reputation as perhaps the nerdiest property on planet Earth once upon a time.
Stranger Things lifted it out of the realms of cringe, its live-action movie brought high fantasy to the big screen with a silly sheen, and now, Baldur's Gate 3 establishing itself as 2023's most awarded and exciting game means there's never been a better time to be a fan of the fantasy property.
It's huge news for dice-rollers once again, and it looks like things are only getting better for the tabletop property. But, it looks like change could be on the horizon for the stories tucked away in Dungeons & Dragons.
Tencent looks to be eyeing up Dungeons & Dragons
As reported by Comicbook.com, a new report from Chinese media site Speed Daily indicates that entertainment giant Tencent could be considering buying the D&D property from Hasbro.
The report claims that Hasbro reached out to Larian Studios to acquire the entire D&D property after the success of Baldur's Gate 3, and even though Larian can't afford it, it has given Tencent the information that Hasbro could be looking for a buyer. It's due to Tencent being a minority shareholder in Larian.
We don't know what Tencent's intentions are with Dungeons & Dragons, as it could be looking to buy the IP entirely or simply look for rights to develop games based on it - but it's a notion that has some pretty big ramifications across the industry.
Tencent is a huge name, and yet, its CEO thinks that the game business "achieved nothing" in the last year. With Tencent's willingness to cut 11% of the global workforce, it's growing more concerning by the day that the giant has its hands on so many properties - especially as D&D could soon be one of them.
What would Tencent do with D&D in games?
If we think about it purely through the lens of video games, Tencent ownning D&D would lead to a lot of change from the perspective of the consumer. Chances are, it'd take a stronger lead on the future of Baldur's Gate, go harder on outsourcing the world to other developers, and (likely) take the franchise into more mobile games.
Tencent seems to have the mobile world cornered, so it'd be an easy place for the company to turn. Of course, none of this is confirmed. Just as Tencent acquired a huge sum of rights for The Lord of the Rings, this could lead to huge changes to the approach of D&D in pop culture. Nothing is set in stone, but brace for impact.
About The Author
Joseph Kime
Joseph Kime is the Senior Trending News Journalist for GGRecon from Devon, UK. Before graduating from MarJon University with a degree in Journalism, he started writing music reviews for his own website before writing for the likes of FANDOM, Zavvi and The Digital Fix. He is host of the Big Screen Book Club podcast, and author of Building A Universe, a book that chronicles the history of superhero movies. His favourite games include DOOM (2016), Celeste and Pokemon Emerald.
